Search This Blog

Rules Review: Chaos Daemons Stuff

Yes, yes, I get it, I get it, I'm late. I don't care. I'm going through these units, because they're important. These are the first 40k rulesets to emerge from 6th Edition. Let's examine them, quick-fire style.

Woohoo, remembered the jump break today!

Post now edited and cleansed of Save errors.

Seeker Chariots: This is the cheapest chariot in the game now (not that it was a massive competition), and the first to come with a 'free' rider (who admittedly suffers from Knight Commander Pask Syndrome and can't get off). This Exalted Alluress character is essentially a Herald of Slaanesh with Wych Initiative and no save, and, if we take the actual cost of the Chariots from the Herald options table, she only costs 10 points. Absolute bargain, considering other models with this price tag.

Admittedly, there are downsides. Running one of these solo is nigh-on suicide, as the poor Alluress only has T3 and Ork armour, and therefore if the Chariot itself is charged by anything short of Fire Warriors, she's dead. Feth, maybe she's dead even if it IS Fire Warriors charging. At least 10, anyway. If she does charge something, she needs to finish or cripple the unit with Hammer O'Wrath and her 5 S3 Rending Attacks, or she's done for. And the Sweep Attacks aren't too impressive, especially when compared to what the Necrons get as one for 10 measly points.

Stupidity Edit: I forgot that the new Daemon rule means anything listed as having no Invulnerable Save actually has a 5+ one. This makes the Alluress marginally better, but 5+ still won't go far enough to prevent her dying in most situations.

Let's go on to the Chariot. It's got Rhino stats for 5 points less than a Rhino, and one less Hull Point. Again, this doesn't add up well in the solo survivability stakes. It does come with offensive and defensive grenades though, something the Command Barge does not, which means a squadron of 3 actually functions well at attacking entrenched units, whilst still being relatively cheap.

A quick addendum on the Bigger Chariot. It's exactly the same, but with double the HP for more than double the cost. Considering that it's still Open-Topped, and that the Alluress is as vulnerable as she is in the small one, I was expecting a little bit more. Maybe it's better with a Herald.

That said, the only benefit of a Herald, really, is that she has a 4+ save, and one more I, which doesn't matter too much. If you're going to use a Herald, take Unholy Might and become S4. It's the only way to really justify the 50 extra points. You still won't kill anything with Sweep Attacks, mind.

Stupidity Edit 2: I forgot that Saves listed in the Daemon book are really Invulnerable, and won't be improved by the Chariot. This makes it a little harder to justify the Herald's cost, although being immune to Instant Death helps a little.

Oh, and did I mention this thing occupies a Heavy Slot and therefore cuts down your Flying Monster numbers? At 500 points or so, I'd take a punt. At 1500, I'd like the Prince. 5/10.

Screamers: They're more expensive. They got slightly worse at killing heavily armoured vehicles, due to not counting as having S8 2D6 AP1 Melta Bombs anymore. They got much better at killing anything short of a Land Raider though. Oh, and they got Bladevanes so they can semi-hurt light infantry they're not in charge range of. They also got better at fighting infantry, but they've exchanged their Invulnerable Save for a Wound, which is probably slightly worse than it is better. 6.5/10.

Stupidity Edit 3: They have a 5+ Invulnerable Save. It's still worse than their old one, but it's enough to marginally boost their score to 6.8/10.

Flamers: Aargh, they did it again. The new Flamer is functionally identical to the old Flamer, at a cheaper price. However, like Screamers, they've gained a Wound at the cost of their Save, which I dislike as it means they lose their flukey survival skills.

Oh, and while I'm at it, what on earth is the point of the Pyrocaster? Why would you want an extra useless Attack for 5 points? Look, I appreciate that the old Flamers were stupid expensive and this fixes that, but at what cost? 6.5/10, with the possibility of a bump to 7 if the 'Five Flamers for virtually the price of three' deal works out in my favour.

Lusty Lawnmower of Slaanesh: Oh come off it. Hellflayer? I prefer my name. Anyway, this unit is kinda worse than the normal Chariot. Yes, you are better offensively, but you cannot be taken in squadrons, your occupant dies to a stiff breeze, and you're still just as fragile. Probably not worth the investment. 3/10, because at least it's better value than five Seekers.

And that's the Daemon expansion. I'll have to live with the new Flamer rules, and I do rather like the idea of Screamers, but I'm avoiding Slaanesh like the plague.

Postscript: You may notice that I've left in all my errors, albeit scored out. This is because not everyone has an amazing memory and it's likely that, like me, some people may forget the Invulnerable Save thing. It's one of those things you want to write on the back of your hand until the new edition is ingrained in your mind properly. Honestly, would it kill GW to give you friendly reminders about this sort of thing?